Tag: baby sewing project

If you have not heard about the amazing-ness of baby bandana bibs, now is your time to learn about them! They are wonderful little bibs for drool-y, teething babies and toddlers. I loved using bandana bibs with Riley even before teething because she would spit up a lot! It would help catch the spit up and keep it off her adorable little clothes. The best part was that it didn’t cover her whole outfit. These also come in handy beyond the drooling and teething days when your little one might have a runny nose. I’d like to think I’ve perfected the bandana bib, and I stand behind my product 100%, which is why I’m so excited to share my tips and tricks with you! There’s a few modifications I will be talking about to, so don’t worry about having all the right tools or equipment.

The bandana bibs I will be showing today are customized with embroidery. I never thought I’d own an embroidery machine, but my investment has definitely paid off. Customized items are very popular as gifts. Many Etsy sellers customize with vinyl, but it just won’t hold up to the wear and tear for a baby item like this. I have found that my items with embroidered text or designs have completely held up in the wash. I purchased my machine on Amazon through their warehouse deals. If you haven’t heard about Amazon’s warehouse deals, I’m here to tell you it is always worth checking out when making a larger purchase. I found my Brother PE770 5×7 Embroidery Machine as a warehouse deal for over $100 off. The only reason it was at the warehouse was because the box had been opened. The machine and all the parts were still sealed in all of the original packaging. It varies, but each specific item available to purchase lists the reason it is in the warehouse, so it is very transparent, and you can make the best decision. The Brother PE770 is an awesome machine, but if you are just looking to embroider for personal use, they have cheaper models as well. The biggest difference will be the hoop size, or space available for your text or design.

1 Fat quarter of your backing material of choice. (My favorite is this waffle terry. It is very soft, and the loops are inside which makes it safety compliant)

Snaps or Velcro (If you have snaps and snap pliers-awesome, if not you can use velcro, but I prefer snaps)

Printable Pattern – DOWNLOAD HERE:Bandana Bib PDF (make sure to print at 100% scale. Check box is 1 inch. There are two pages, line them up and trim border)

*If you are embroidering you will need the following:

My two choices for stabilizer are Fusible No-Show PolyMesh which you can iron right to your fabric, or regular No-Show Polymesh which you will use an adhesive spray to temporarily stick it to your fabric. I find it quicker to use the spray, and it’s easier to peel off the extra you will be trimming afterwards, but both options work fine.

Embroidery thread color of your choice

Equipment and Tools:

Sewing Machine

*Embroidery Machine (optional)

*Embroidery software (optional)

Scissors, Pins, Iron

**Side note** I love these floral prints these bandanas are made of, and the grey one in particular is from one of my favorite brands, Dear Stella. They have some other adorable florals, along with cute dinosaur prints and some irresistible woodland creature prints. Check it out on fabric.com!

Step One, Cut out our materials. Fold the fabric in half, line the pattern up to the fold, pin and cut. (Two bibs pictured, not backing material)

If you are not embroidering, skip ahead! Roll out the stabilizer, and cut a piece that is longer than your hoop frame. Then iron or spray and stick it to your fabric.

Next we will line it up in the frame. *TIP* Iron your bandana in half both ways to create creases to help you center it. My text needed the 7 inch length of my hoop, so I had to turn my fabric on its side. I used the ruler grid to line up the center with my creases. Keep in mind, the text might not be centered height wise depending on how long your design is. You want to make sure your stitching does not get too close to the edge, so it may need to be closer to the top.

Hook your hoop to your machine, and get started. Machines will work differently, but load your design into the machine, adjust your layout, and begin. For mine, I make sure there is a tail of thread, but I do not hold it, or it will jam. After it has done a few stitches, pause it, and trim any excess so it does not get tangled. Do the same as you continue, pause after the first few stitches to trim the tail from the last letter.

Take your finished piece out of the hoop, and carefully trim the excess stabilizer.

**PICK UP HERE**

Pin your front and back pieces together, right sides facing in. Leave about a 2-3 inch gap on one side of the point to turn the bandana bib inside out. Sew around the bib, making sure to back stitch at the beginning and end of the opening. Trim with pinking sheers.

Turn the bandana bib inside out and use a dull pencil tip or stick to push out the corners and ends. Iron it flat, making sure to fold in the opening flap.

Now we will top stitch to close the opening and to give it a professional, crisp look. Change your stitch length to 3 for topstitching.

We will be adding the snaps now. If you are using velcro, pin down 1 inch strips of velcro on the ends. Make sure to sew to opposite sides so it matches when you overlap the back to close it.
For the snaps you will need your snap pliers, and this sharp point stick to make your hole. I also made a template from cardboard, so my snaps are evenly placed on both ends. If you plan to put two snaps on both ends to make the size adjustable, I highly advise making a template. Make your holes on both ends of the bandana bib.

Insert the cap into the remade hole on the outer side of the fabric. Insert the other half on the other side. It doesn’t matter if you use a socket or stud, as long as you keep it consistent if you will be using more than one snap on each end of the bandana bib. I like to put sockets on this side. Take your pliers, with the cap at the bottom, flat side down, and squeeze. Repeat for the other hold on this side (if adding snaps for adjusting).

Repeat on the other side, but make sure to insert your cap from the inside, and use the opposite (stud or socket) from your other side.

Check that your snaps click and open easily, and use the pliers again on any that need fixing. Then you are done!

If you’re thinking about opening an Etsy shop I highly recommend you read my blog post here for some food for thought. This post will help you figure out what products to sell, and there are more posts to come soon, so be sure to sign up for my newsletter.

It’s almost 4th of July! My favorite time of year!! That might be because my birthday follows a few days later, but still. Summer is my favorite season! I love enjoying the fresh air and the warmth from the sun, and the fun summer activities.

I thought I’d share how to make the headwrap style headband I show in my skirt tutorial. This is an easy project but you’ll need about at least a yard of fabric because it is quite long. It’s a little bit different than my other headbands you might see in my shop. I’m going to share how to do those soon!

What you’ll need:

-Cotton fabric *46 inches by 7 inches* Measurements are variable which I will discuss later.

-As always…Pins, scissors, pinking shears, sewing machine and iron

You could make this with a variety of fabrics, even a stretchy cotton knit or perhaps a gauzy fabric. I used woven cotton for mine. I love shopping for fabric at fabric.com. They carry all of my favorite designers and brands, and they have such a wide variety of type of fabric. You can even get free shipping for orders over $49. They always have great sales! Currently select summer prints are on sale! Great time to snatch some up.

First, I’d like to go over the sizing. 46 inch long fabric will give you a finished piece about 42 inches long. This fits an average-sized toddler head once around with a bow. It should wrap around a younger baby twice. If you’re considering cutting a different length, use a tape measure to wrap around their head the desired way (once or twice) and then add about 26 inches for tying the bow and to account for the angle of the end and seam allowance.
To cut the fabric, fold it over lengthwise so you are measuring 23 inches (half of the total) long from the fold and 7 inches width. Use pins or a marking pencil to mark your measurements for cutting. Cut it out.

Next, unfold the fabric so you have the entire length open. Fold right sides together and pin the whole length of the headwrap. Make sure to mark a gap of about two inches you will leave open to turn the headband right side out.

Now use a ruler or straight edge to mark a line for the angle at either end. Mark and cut one end. Then flip it so the other end is the opposite angle and use the edge to guide your marking and cutting of the other end.
Once the angles are cut for both ends it’s time to stitch it up. Start at one end. Be sure to back stitch. Follow your angled cut at the end, make a nice sharp turn and stitch along the entire length of the headwrap except for the opening. Be sure to use your back stitch at the start and stop of the opening.

Trim your edges. I prefer to trim with pinking shears so the fabric isn’t fraying inside. Use a chopstick or pencil carefully to help turn and push out the corners.

Iron the head wrap. I do not bother to stitch the opening but you can stitch it or ladder stitch it closed if you prefer.

There are a few ways these head wraps can be tied. My daughter does not sit still, so I quickly wrap it around her head and make the first knot to establish the size. I slip it over my leg and find a spot at that size to finish tieing the bow. Also note here that I fold the headwrap in half so it is less wide, but it can be used fully open as well. I open the fabric to its full width in the bow and position the ends so they match.

If you are going around the head twice, the initial knot will be at the back bottom of the head.
Another way to wear it is as a flat band across the front and just two knots in the back with the ties hanging down. I have also put one knot in the center and used that as the “decoration” in the front and tied it in the back with the ties hanging down.

These head wraps are so adorable and versatile. Check out what Target has available on sale right now in clothes to complete your little one’s look. 20% off clothing, shoes & accessories with promo code JULY4. Valid 7/2-7/4 Just click here!

Happy 4th of July!!!

If you’re thinking about opening an Etsy shop I highly recommend you read my blog post here for some food for thought. This post will help you figure out what products to sell, and there are more posts to come soon, so be sure to sign up for my newsletter.